שכח shakhákh, “forget,” is pa'al, root ש־כ־ח. Final guttural ח gives it the same broad ל״ח shape as פתח: a patach future, a furtive patach in the masculine singular present and infinitive, and a feminine present in -ákhat. Its complements distinguish simply failing to remember from deliberately dismissing a matter.
Complete paradigm
| Person | Past | Future |
|---|---|---|
| אני | שָׁכַחְתִּי shakhákhti | אֶשְׁכַּח eshkákh |
| אתה | שָׁכַחְתָּ shakhákhta | תִּשְׁכַּח tishkákh |
| את | שָׁכַחְתְּ shakhákht | תִּשְׁכְּחִי tishkekhí |
| הוא | שָׁכַח shakhákh | יִשְׁכַּח yishkákh |
| היא | שָׁכְחָה shakhkhá | תִּשְׁכַּח tishkákh |
| אנחנו | שָׁכַחְנוּ shakhákhnu | נִשְׁכַּח nishkákh |
| אתם / אתן | שְׁכַחְתֶּם / שְׁכַחְתֶּן shkhakhtém / shkhakhtén | תִּשְׁכְּחוּ tishkekhú |
| הם / הן | שָׁכְחוּ shakhkhú | יִשְׁכְּחוּ yishkekhú |
שִׁכְחָה remains a general dictionary headword for forgetting or failure of memory. A resource that omits it from one verb card does not make the noun nonexistent.
| Form | Paradigm | Use |
|---|---|---|
| present | שׁוֹכֵחַ shokhéakh · שׁוֹכַחַת shokhákhat · שׁוֹכְחִים shokhekhím · שׁוֹכְחוֹת shokhekhót | neutral |
| imperative | שְׁכַח shkhákh · שִׁכְחִי shikhkhí · שִׁכְחוּ shikhkhú | possible but much rarer than negative commands |
| infinitive | לִשְׁכּוֹחַ lishkóakh | neutral |
| action noun | שִׁכְחָה shikhkhá | forgetting, oblivion or failure of memory |
The specifically feminine plural future תִּשְׁכַּחְנָה tishkákhna is (formal or literary); contemporary speech uses תשכחו. Conversational past שָׁכַחְתֶּם / שָׁכַחְתֶּן is shakhákhtem / shakhákhten, beside careful shkhakhtém / shkhakhtén.
סליחה, שכחתי.
slikhá, shakhákhti.
Sorry, I forgot.
שכחתי לגמרי שאנחנו נפגשים היום.
shakhákhti legamré she'anákhnu nifgashím hayóm.
I completely forgot that we're meeting today.
What final ח changes
The future has patach rather than cholam: תשכח tishkákh, not a form with ו. In suffixed תשכחי / תשכחו, the middle cluster is broken by e. Present masculine שוכח and infinitive לשכוח are written with final ח but pronounced with an a immediately before it; feminine שוכחת has ordinary -ákhat. These patterns are developed on lamed-guttural pa'al.
הוא שכח שהיינו אמורים להיפגש.
hu shakhákh shehayínu amurím lehipagésh.
He forgot that we were supposed to meet.
את תשכחי מזה עד מחר.
at tishkekhí mizé ad makhár.
You'll forget about it by tomorrow. (to a woman)
Unpointed נשכח is a genuine collision: pa'al future נִשְׁכַּח nishkákh “we will forget,” nif'al past נִשְׁכַּח nishkákh “was forgotten,” or nif'al present נִשְׁכָּח nishkákh “is forgotten.” The present differs under niqqud, but all three have the same ordinary pronunciation and bare spelling; syntax and time context decide.
אם לא נרשום את זה, נשכח.
im lo nirshóm et ze, nishkákh.
If we don't write it down, we'll forget.
Object, dismissal, action and fact
The complement marks what kind of forgetting is meant.
| Frame | Meaning | Model |
|---|---|---|
| שכח את | fail to remember a definite thing/person | שכחתי את השם |
| שכח מ־ | forget about; context can add dismissal or abandonment | שכחתי מהפגישה · תשכח מזה |
| שכח ל־ | fail to perform an intended action | שכחתי להתקשר |
| שכח ש־ | fail to remember a fact | שכחתי שיש פגישה |
שכחתי את השם שלו, אבל אני זוכר את הפנים.
shakhákhti et hashém sheló, avál aní zokhér et hapaním.
I forgot his name, but I remember the face. (m. speaker)
תשכח מזה; הם כבר בחרו מישהו אחר.
tishkákh mizé; hem kvar bakharú míshéhu akhér.
Forget about it; they've already chosen someone else. (to a man)
שכחתי להתקשר אליה אתמול.
shakhákhti lehitkashér eléha etmól.
I forgot to call her yesterday.
A forgotten object and its location remain separate arguments. שכחתי את הטלפון בבית means the phone was forgotten and the house is where it was left; ב־ does not replace object marker את.
שכחתי את הטלפון בבית, אז לא ראיתי את ההודעה.
shakhákhti et hateléfon babáyit, az lo ra'íti et hahoda'á.
I left my phone at home, so I didn't see the message.
Commands and related forms
The positive imperative שכח / שכחי / שכחו exists, but telling someone to forget is usually expressed with future תשכח מזה. Far more frequent are negative future commands after אל: אל תשכח / אל תשכחי / אל תשכחו. This follows the general negative imperative.
אל תשכחי מפתחות; אני חוזר מאוחר.
al tishkekhí maftekhót; aní khozér me'ukhár.
Don't forget keys; I'm coming back late. (to a woman)
Adjective שכוח שָׁכוּחַ shakhúakh means forgotten. שכוח אל shakhúakh el is the expressive fixed idiom “godforsaken,” common in conversational and journalistic description as well as elevated prose. Similar-looking שכיח שָׁכִיחַ shakhíakh means common/frequent, and שכיחות שְׁכִיחוּת shekhikhút means prevalence (academic/technical). They share a traditional root association but are not meanings of “forget” in modern use.
זו תופעה שכיחה, ואין סיבה להילחץ.
zo tofa'á shekhikhá, ve'ein sibá lehilakhéts.
This is a common phenomenon, and there's no reason to panic.
Common Mistakes
1. Dropping את before a definite forgotten object.
❌ שכחתי הטלפון בבית.
Incorrect—the definite object הטלפון requires את.
✅ שכחתי את הטלפון בבית.
shakhákhti et hateléfon babáyit.
I left my phone at home.
2. Distinguishing a forgotten object from “forget about.”
✅ שכחתי מהפגישה.
shakhákhti mehapgishá.
I forgot about the meeting. (מ־ marks the forgotten topic/event)
✅ שכחתי את השם שלו, אבל אז נזכרתי.
shakhákhti et hashém sheló, avál az nizkárti.
I forgot his name, but then I remembered.
3. Adding ו to the patach future.
❌ אל תשכוח להתקשר.
Incorrect—the future after אל is תשכח, without ו; לשכוח is the infinitive.
✅ אל תשכח להתקשר כשתגיע.
al tishkákh lehitkashér kshetagía.
Don't forget to call when you arrive. (to a man)
Key Takeaways
- Final ח produces שוכח, שוכחת, ישכח, לשכוח; the future has no ו.
- Use את for a forgotten object, מ־ for “forget about” (neutral or dismissive by context), an infinitive for an omitted action, and ש־ for a fact.
- נשכח can mean “we will forget” or “was/is forgotten.”
- Negative אל תשכח/י/ו is much commoner than the positive imperative.
- שכיח means common/frequent; it is not a form of “forget” in modern usage.
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